Thursday, August 11, 2011

I was chatting with Vidyala from Manalicious the other week when she mentioned that it was cool that I ran BGs on both factions. "Most people have a lot of faction loyalty that way," she said.

She's right. It's kind of funny that way, because I'll hear "We suck! We always suck!" no matter what BG or what faction I'm running with. Since the Battlegroups were combined, I've seen little evidence of one faction's dominance over the BG scene. Sure, I've heard stories about how the Horde used to mop up BGs, but that isn't the case these days.

Some BGs are virtually identical for both factions --such as WSG or SoA or EotS-- but others do have a few critical differences. The choke point in AV close to the Horde base can be a deadly trap for the Alliance (I've been on the receiving end of that before), and the current strategies in IoC (Horde to Workshop and Ally to Docks) favors the Horde with the beefier demo units.

But that pales to how identical the BG chat is.

If there's one truism about pugging BGs in Cata, it's that the amount of time spent nerd raging in a BG is inversely proportional to the effect you have on a BG. If you're busy typing about how everyone blows chunks, you're probably not out fighting. Sure, you could have created a "We all suck!" macro, but most nerd ragers aren't satisfied with that simple --if inaccurate-- statement. Why stop with three words when twenty will do?

There's a special space in hell reserved for those people who need to channel their inner George S. Patton. "Get the EFC! Get the EFC!" says the toon who is jumping around back at the base. Meanwhile, five of his compatriots are busy attempting to chop their way through three healers and a Hunter to get at said EFC.

"We all suck! We were never good! Why did I ever FC to Ally anyway?"

Beats the hell outta me, man. If you were on the Horde side, you'd be saying the same thing in a losing effort.

***

If there's one problem I've had running BGs on both factions, it's the keeping track of what side I'm on.

No, seriously.

You'd think that a (relatively) slim Blood Elf would stand out in contrast with a hulking male Draenei, but when I'm in the midst of a BG, keeping track of several things at once, I occasionally slip up and think I'm on the opposing faction. That can get unnerving in a constantly shifting BG such as Arathi Basin or Eye of the Storm, where you could end up running into the opposing faction's territory while you're examining the map. One minute you think you're rushing up to help defend a node, and the next you're back at the Spirit Healer.

The choke point in AV close to the Horde base can be a deadly trap for the Alliance (I've been on the receiving end of that before), and the current strategies in IoC (Horde to Workshop and Ally to Docks) favors the Horde with the beefier demo units.

Bwah! Where does the Horde have a choke point near their base in AV? Nothing like the Dun Baldar bridge, surely... And in my battlegroup people are moaning about "whoever gets Docks, wins" in IotC (which usually means Alliance).

Not to say that "You are wrong!" but I think it's funny that the things that you cite as slight Horde advantages are exactly the same things that I see brought up as massive Alliance advantages.

In my Battlegroup, I've hardly ever seen the choke point over the Dun Baldar bridge come into play, but the choke point near TP does. If the Alliance is defending across the Dun Baldar bridge they've got problems, because the Horde probably has the graveyard right across the bridge, and can rez with impunity. The Alliance's rez point just outside Stormpike is a farther run (only slightly, but enough) and that'll allow Horde players to slip through if there's enough pressure. If the Horde is smart, they won't cap the Snowfall Graveyard, forcing any Ally who want to die back in Horde territory to rez there instead of back at Stormpike. That keeps the Stormpike defenders down for the Horde to push against.

At the Iceblood choke point, the Iceblood Graveyard is farther away and the Alliance runback gives the Horde more time to defend. The Horde can have a second layer of defense come into play and hunt down the Ally players who sneak through; I've been on the receiving end of that, where Rogues and Druids can roam in pairs to hunt down Ally trying to make for the Mines or take another Graveyard behind.

As for IoC, I've seen the glaive throwers destroyed far more easily than the demos. It usually takes a couple of good hits from a Rogue or a Warrior, especially if some Horde defenders work in pairs: one to take the stuns, and another to beat on the throwers. Once the glaive throwers go down, you're dependent upon people actually remembering to utilize the bombs they picked up (remember them?) and defend the Docks until the next round materializes. What I've seen in our Battlegroup is that doesn't happen, but a splinter group tries to take the Workshop or gets stuck fighting for the Airfield, diverting resources away from the primary goal.

It reminds me of when I once pointed this out in a guild I was in and... got kicked for it. Touchy subject! Some guy said "aww, horde always win" and I said (since I normally play horde) "it's funny though, when you play horde they always say the same about alliance". For some reason this pushed someones buttons, and I was kicked from the guild for this comment. ^^